When Jesse commits to a project, he uses custom home design, interior design,
and landscape design to create a cohesively luxurious environment no matter
where you reside within the grounds. Within these subsets of design, there are a
number of nuances that Jesse approaches with passion and creativity. Today we
wanted to highlight one of these nuances; Jesse’s use of common functional
elements of the home as an opportunity to create a feeling of luxury. In the case of
the Swansea Hilltop Lookout project, Jesse designed the staircase as a sculpture
within the space, offering an artistic presence within the room. Jesse designed this
staircase with the intention of it characterizing the environment of several rooms in
the home, an opportunity created by the central position of this staircase within the
floor plan, and specifically within the two storey atrium. To achieve this effect, he
employed the use of a custom milled white oak stair cladding that is continuous
from the basement to the third floor of the home. The railing boots, stringers,
railings, and transitions between landings are all meant to look like one piece of
wood, as if it was an integral part of the home’s infrastructure. This staircase serves
as a characterizing feature in the space and we are thrilled with the end result.
This same cladding wraps around the back side of the fridge niche to create the
effect of the wood corner defining the space visually from the kitchen and dining
room. The edge of this wooden corner lands almost directly in line with the floor to
ceiling fireplace feature, which offers a much more tangible division of space. The
species and stain colour of the wood cladding used was selected with the
intention of blending in with both the herringbone hardwood floors, and the fluted
wood accent wall. This was an intentional effect on the part of Jesse to reduce the
amount of materials used in the space.
The second floor hallway design plan adds to this intended effect, as it features
floor to ceiling wainscotting, herringbone flooring, unique modern wall sconces, and
LED features to highlight it all. The placement of this feature hallway within the floor
plan serves to both characterize the walk to and from the bedrooms, views from the
large format glass wall in the office, and the views from the full height living room
area as well. In addition to this the hallway and staircase feature serves as a
notable feature from street view when the 6 large windows are open in the two
storey atrium.
This feature is also a great example of how impactful ambient lighting can be, both
highlighting a feature in the space while creating a luxurious environment without
the use of direct lighting. Ambient LED lighting is included at the base of the hallway
feature wall, in the second storey ceiling trays within the atrium, as well as under
each stair tread on every level of the home, offering a warm glow within the two
storey atrium that beautifully highlights Jesse’s staircase design. We consider
layered lighting like this to be a critical part of the custom home design process.
Intentional and detailed designs like this that focus on the creation of a specific
environment require a brutally specific approach when seeking to create the perfect
space. Every fixture, finish, and profile within the room has to “work” in Jesse’s eyes
and you can never be critical enough for this reason. Questioning each selection
and being present on-site as it comes together is an incredibly exciting process that
allows you to make decisions that refines the design significantly along the way.
Though our 3D modeling process seeks to avoid this from being necessary, theres
nothing like standing in the space and taking an organic and detailed approach on
the part of the lead designer. In this case, this process of designing and “checking”
at multiple steps along the way was the perfect approach for this uniquely finished
custom home design.
